Whispers in the Wind
by Wood Elf luver
Summary: Legolas had never once felt fear when he was in Rivendell...until the strange things started happening. Someone is looking for him, messing with him, following him closer than his shadow. The only thing Legolas feels is saving him is the nagging voice in his head, constantly repeating one word: run.
1. Chapter 1

Something did not feel right. Not one to be prone to fear, the uncommon feeling of panic swelled deep within in his chest, dark and thundering like a valley storm. He should be safe here. Rivendell had always been his escape from the darkness that plagued his beloved Mirkwood, a lighthouse to relieve weary travelers from the choppy waters of the past. To feel such anxiousness pang at his heart in this place was almost enough to break the organ in two. Nevertheless, he felt it. Every single inch of his body felt it. His senses were screaming at him, though he could not decipher the reason for it.

This in itself was deeply concerning. Despite the fact that Legolas felt that he was in danger, the room he always stayed in when visiting the Elven kingdom was just as it had been when he had given in to his exhaustion. A gentle breeze blew the purple, silk curtains that hid the small balcony beyond them. His pack, carrying his weapons and a few books he thought he might indulge in while in Rivendell, was where he had left it near the entrance to the bedroom. His keen Elven eyesight soon picked up that while nothing in the room had physically changed, there was an electricity in the atmosphere that had not been there. This spark must have been the thing that had snapped him from his dreamless sleep. He could not imagine resting now as the fear in his chest became almost overwhelming.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. Mayhap he was being paranoid; he had had a bad dream or he was overly alert after his long journey and the affects of such had caught up to him. There had to be a logical, less dangerous possibility in his head than what his mind was currently imagining. Legolas sighed, sitting up on his elbows and glancing one last time around his room. Nothing moved. The only sound was his heavy breathing. Legolas had never minded the quiet; in fact, he usually quite enjoyed such moments of silence so that he could sort through his thoughts, a thing he never quite had the opportunity to do back home. This silence was not like those relaxing ones that he had grown to appreciate...this one was loud.

Slowly, Legolas lowered himself back onto his bed. He was being ridiculous. In the morning, he would awaken in his bed, the sun shining through the thin curtains, warming the room with its brilliant rays and bringing with it the peace he longed for. _Yes,_ he thought as he willed himself to close his eyes, _tomorrow this feeling will be gone._

Just when he had almost slipped back into sleep, that voice in his head, the one that had been screaming earlier but had quieted down since Legolas had decided to ignore it, suddenly became one steady word.

 _Run._

Legolas sat up straight in his bed. He looked around the room again. Still nothing had changed, but now that feeling was back, impossible to ignore this time. He looked down at his limbs to find that they were shaking. He was an Elf. He never felt the effects of the cold nor did he ever quake with fear. Something was definitely wrong.

 _Run._

Blankets fell to the floor as Legolas pushed them aside. He quickly tugged on his boots and grabbed his pack. He did not know why, but his gut told him that he had to take his belongings with him. There was something dark here, something that he had never felt, not even in Mirkwood. The wind, which had seemed so gentle before, now blew hard as he exited the room. He could have sworn he heard a whisper in it, like nature was trying to warn him too. Whatever he was being told to run from, he did not want to be around to see, yet he did not know where to go. It was the dead of night. The entirety of Rivendell was sleeping, undisturbed, it seemed, by the tension in the air. Oddly enough, he realized that he did not feel the overwhelming pressure outside of his room.

Even so, he decided that going back into his room was not a good idea. With one last, suspicious glance back the door, Legolas began walking towards the center of the castle. His blonde hair whipped in the wind, and he cast his eyes over the walls of the castle. Beyond the borders, the grounds looked peaceful. The early signs of spring were just beginning to show. Patches of green grass were beginning to sprout from the ground. A look to the forest revealed that the trees were starting to grow their leaves back, though many were still bare. Legolas breathed it in, letting the calmness of the scene settle him again. Nature always had a way of bringing him comfort, even in his darkest hours.

He reluctantly turned away from the castle wall and continued walking onwards, farther away from his room. When he reached the center of the palace, he passed by Aragorn's rooms. The idea of waking Estel did cross his mind, but he dismissed it. He would not worry his friend over a silly feeling. Legolas was a proud creature and did not prefer to admit his discomfort. He decided to keep this a secret for the time being. After all, perhaps it had meant nothing.

After Aragorn's room was Lord Elrond's chambers. Legolas walked soundlessly by them, certain that if the ruler was within them, he needed his rest more than Legolas needed comfort.

Finally, Legolas stopped in front of the entrance to the Elrond's grand library, filled with thousands of books that Legolas had spent much of his time in Rivendell pouring through. He paused before reaching out his hand and tugging on the handle, silently opening the door before stepping inside. He breathed in the musky smell of old literature, a scent that he could not mistake. He felt comfortable here, he decided, and closed the door behind him.

No longer were his senses screaming at him to run, nor was the wind whispering in his sensitive ears that warning of oncoming danger. Legolas shuddered, though not from the cold. Had he imagined it all? He pondered on whether or not he should return to his chambers. Certainly he was suspicious that something was not right in the room he had abandoned. Before, Legolas had been convinced that he needed to get out of there, but now that he was in a place of comfort, he wondered if maybe he had dreamt it.

Then why would his mind have told him to run? Why would his body react so severely with its shaking? Legolas hugged himself as he sat on the divan near one of the large windows. No. He would not go back tonight. He would rather be safe than sorry.

"Legolas?"

Someone was shaking him, and he sat up with a start. He looked around before his eyes landed on the face of Aragorn, who was staring at him, confusion and concern evident in his gaze. "Are you alright?" he asked, his healer's eyes already scanning Legolas, no doubt for any illness or injury that could have plagued the Elf. Legolas gave him what he hoped looked like a reassuring smile and responded, "Yes, Estel, I am well. I simply could not sleep last night, so I came here to tire myself with reading."

This seemed like a very logical response, and Legolas was pleased with his lying abilities, until he saw Aragorn's smirk. "What book?" he asked, a hint of amusement in his voice. Legolas looked around to find that there was not a text within reach that he could grab. Guilt also rose in his chest for lying to his friend, so he quietly admitted, "There is none."

Aragorn frowned. Legolas sighed. He hated to make the Human worry about nothing. His mind traced back over the events from the night before. He had reacted quite cowardly, he realized, like a small Elfling that was afraid of the dark. Aragorn sat beside Legolas and asked, "Legolas, tell me the truth. I am not fond of dishonesty."

That, Legolas knew quite well. He had frustrated Aragorn many a time with concealing his hurts and discomforts. This time, though, it seemed quite silly and he answered honestly, "I am fine, Aragorn. I had a bad dream and came here to clear my thoughts, and I suppose I drifted off."

Aragorn still looked unconvinced, but then Legolas looked him in the eyes and gave him a genuine smile. "It was nothing to be concerned about. I am well," he reassured.

Finally, finally, Aragorn smiled back at him. "You should have came to me, Legolas," Aragorn said. Legolas sighed. "I did not want to disturb you over something so childish," he answered, standing and brushing himself out of habit.

Aragorn laughed behind him as he stood again as well. "When has a childish problem ever kept you from coming to me?" he teased. Legolas cast a mischievous glance in his direction. "Do not act like you know the answer to my childish problems, as you are usually the one that causes them," he jested.

"Is that so? Well-"

Elrond burst through the door, causing both Elf and Human to jump in response. Legolas frowned. How had he not heard the steps of the Elven ruler approaching? "Legolas?!" he called, sounding worried. Legolas walked closer, as Elrond could not see him behind a tall book shelf. "I am here, Lord Elrond. What is the matter?" he asked, glancing back at Aragorn. The Ranger shrugged, indicating he was just as confused as Legolas.

When he turned his gaze back towards Elrond, the Elven ruler's face had softened with evident relief. Elrond went to Legolas and hugged him, deepening Legolas's concern and confusion. "Elrond...what happened?" Legolas asked when he pulled away. The look on his face turned from relieved to grim once more.

"I stopped by your room to wake you for breakfast this morning," Lord Elrond explained. "The door was open and you were not inside. It looks like someone broke in and overturned everything in the room, as though they were looking for something."

Legolas felt his heart nearly halt and that same voice that had told him to run came through again, this time with a message somehow even more sinister:

 _They were looking for you._


	2. Chapter 2

Author's note: Thank you to everyone who left reviews and followed after reading Chapter 1! I hope that you find Chapter 2 just as intriguing (or more ;))!

WELWELWELWELWEL

"Who could have done this?"

The mattress to the bed had been tossed on the floor. The sheets and blankets had been stripped and lay in a heap near the entrance to the balcony. Legolas' eyes scanned the room, though he was more concentrated on what this meant rather than the mess that had been made. His instincts, the voice in his head that had been screaming at him to run, the overwhelming panic in his chest that he had tried so hard to ignore...his body had detected danger even when it had seemed illogical. What would have happened if he would have stayed in his bed a few minutes longer?

He shuddered at the thought. No. He would not allow himself to contemplate this anymore. Whatever this person had been looking for, they had been unable to find.

 _They will be back._

Legolas closed his eyes, ignoring that same voice in his head and turning instead to Lord Elrond, who had brushed back one of the curtains and was staring off into the distance. "You did not do this, Legolas?" Aragorn asked, his silhouette leaned against the frame of the entrance.

"What reason would I have to tear my own room apart, Estel?" Legolas asked, slightly offended by being accused of such havoc. Aragorn saw the hurt look on Legolas' face and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Forgive me, mellon nin. I did not mean to offend you," he said regretfully.

Legolas gave him smile in acceptance of the apology. Elrond leaned down to pick up the wayward sheets from the floor. "If you did not do this, Legolas, then do you have any clue who would have had cause to create such a mess?" he asked, eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he met Legolas' eyes.

All that the younger Elf could do was shrug, which he knew was not helpful. "Lord Elrond, you know me," he whispered, a ghost of a smile on his lips. "I have more than a few enemies, though none that I know of in Rivendell."

Grim expressions spread onto the faces of his comrades. They knew all too well. Many a time had Legolas been nearly killed by those seeking revenge for his or his father's past deeds. However, all of these occurrences had happened outside of Elrond's Rivendell. In fact, most of the time, Rivendell was the haven Legolas was sent to for recovery. That now Legolas had become a target of someone inside the castle was deeply concerning to his friends as well as the Elf himself.

Finally, Lord Elrond broke the silence. "We will investigate further later on. For now...Legolas, I am not comfortable with you staying in this room, as I am sure you are not keen to the idea either. I will find a vacant room for you to take that is closer to the center of the castle. It is better to be safe than sorry," he said, his expression ever blank and his calmness helped to ease Legolas' worries.

As Elrond left to find Legolas another room, Aragorn turned suspicious eyes to his friend. "A bad dream?" Aragorn said with an eyebrow raised, crossing his arms over his chest to make his annoyance with Legolas clear.

The Elf sighed. "It was silly, Aragorn," he said, averting his eyes to the floor. Yet, as his eyes roamed over his room, he wondered if it really had been so silly. Perhaps his paranoia had saved him from crossing paths with whatever person had broken into his room overnight. In fact, it seemed almost definite, that surely if he had stayed and continued to ignore his gut, perhaps something worse than a messy room and a broken door handle would have occurred here.

"Be honest with me, Legolas. I mean it this time. What really happened?" Aragorn asked, putting an arm around the shoulders of the Elf, who was clearly upset by the situation.

Legolas met his friend's eyes. "I don't think that whoever did this was looking for something, Aragorn," he said. His friend's frown only deepened.

"What do you mean?" he asked, worry shining in his eyes. Legolas despised being the cause of that look and wished he could take his words back. However, he felt that Estel would have taken it was more of an insult for him to continue to lie about the previous night's events. Legolas would not sacrifice their bond over his pride.

"I think they were looking for someone, Aragorn. I think they were looking for me. I did not leave my room because of a nightmare, Estel. I left because I felt danger in my wake."

Aragorn looked away, already deep in thought. If what Legolas had said was true, then the situation at least would make a great deal of sense. Nothing in the room had been taken; rather, everything had been upturned, perhaps in search of the Elf that was being housed in these quarters. Aragorn hated the thought of this, but he knew that it provided some comfort in knowing what they were up against now.

"Ada was correct. The sooner that you can vacate this room, the better," Aragorn said, hoping his tone did not hold within it the fear that he felt. He squeezed Legolas' shoulder. "Everything will be fine once we can move you to a different space."

Legolas stared at his friend, searching for a lie in his eyes as he felt that his words were not truth. "How do you know?" he asked, surprising himself for he had never questioned Aragorn before. Aragorn looked just as stunned, and Legolas removed himself from Estel's hold.

He walked away from the comforting presence of his friend and instead stared into the mirror just above the dresser, which miraculously seemed to remain untouched. Legolas frowned, glancing back down at the dresser, wanting to confirm what his eyes had just glanced over. What he saw made his stomach churn nauseatingly. His fingers gently reached out and touched it, withdrawing quickly and he turned away, unable to comprehend what he had just seen.

"Legolas?" Aragorn asked, putting a hand on his friend's chest to steady him, as he had suddenly become a sickening shade of pale. Legolas closed his eyes and whispered, "It appears as though my theory is correct. Someone was in here last night...with me."

He bent his head and walked out of the room as fast as he could, feeling the walls closing in around him. He left Aragorn standing there alone, wondering what had happened. He looked back at the dresser, his eyes landing on what was clearly the root of the flash of fear that had sparked in his friend's eyes.

Laying on the dresser top, tied in a delicate knot, was a thick piece of Legolas' hair, the ends frayed from where it had been cut from his head.


End file.
